The Left Democratic Front government has delivered yet another promise to Kerala’s people with Prime Minister Narendra Modi set to flag off Kochi Water Metro, the first such initiative in the country, on Tuesday, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said in a statement here on Monday.
He said the project (in which 78 electric-hybrid ferries will operate in the Greater Kochi area) was the biggest integrated water transport system in Asia. The project was estimated to cost ₹1,136 crore, which included State government funds and soft loan by German funding agency KfW.
The project could be emulated in at least 40 cities in India which had abundant waterways. The State government was keen to revive and modernise water transport, including through National Waterway-III (that links Kollam and Kottapuram), considering that innumerable waterways in Kerala were once navigable, he said.
